Where it began

Rix dates back to 1873 when a sea Captain and Merchant Adventurer called Robert Rix traded out of the Port of Hull. He started in business as a shipbuilder, building small coastal craft on the south bank of the River Tees in Stockton.

Steamships

Robert Rix & Sons took delivery of two pairs of steamships, which bore the family name for the first time. These were the Magrix, Robrix, Jarrix, and Ebbrix and they set the precedent by which all Rix ships would be named.

Success story

The Rix success story started in 1927 with Robert Rix and Sons importing tractor vaporising oil for the post-war agricultural revolution. Lamp oil, packed in oak casks was also carried from Russia to the Humber on Rix ships, thus Rix petroleum was born.

Major expansion

The company's first major expansion occurred at the end of the Second World War with the easing of wartime restrictions on the sale of oil and petrol. On the 1st of January 1947 Robert Rix’s eldest son John Robert Rix, the grandfather of the Chairman, formed J. R. Rix and Sons with a working capital of £7,000 and one motor ship.

Supplying agricultural and commercial diesel customers throughout Yorkshire’s East Riding; "old man Robert" as he was fondly called also established petrol filling stations in the Hull area.

Rix Shipping

J.R. Rix and Sons continued to see major growth during the 1950s and 1960s, brought on by the popularity and low cost of oil-fired central heating and an increased demand for diesel, due to the the ever-expanding road transport industry. Rix Shipping Co Ltd. was formed as a result on the 23rd March 1950.

Piggins Rix

In the early 60's Rix Limes Ltd was formed to supply lime to the Scottish agricultural market through an extensive network of inland depots serviced by road and rail from Montrose where it was imported on Rix dry cargo ships. This lime was sourced from Humber quarries and transported by rail to Hull docks for forwarding to Montrose where it was discharged by J. M. Piggins Ltd, later to become Piggins Rix Ltd, the Rix Group’s first owned interest in Scotland.

Shortly after this, an opportunity arose to build a fuel depot in Montrose servicing the extensive offshore industry and this in turn soon developed into Rix’s domestic heating oil, agricultural and haulage sectors.

Hepworth Shipyards

In 1977, J.R. Rix & Sons Ltd bought the Paull-based shipbuilder J.R. Hepworth & Co (Hull) Ltd and formed a new company, Hepworth Shipyard Ltd, which built small craft such as trawlers and tugs at its location on the north bank of the Humber.

Maritime Bunkering

In 1996, Rix Maritime Bunkering was officially formed, a tradition that continues to this day with our fleet of coastal dry cargo vessels trading across the North Sea and into the Baltic. In the autumn of 2008Rix also launched its brand new 2000-tonne oil tanker, the LizRix, named after Elizabeth, the daughter of J.R. Rix & Sons Managing Director, Tim Rix.

Already cemented as a substantial business in the Ridings of Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and the North Midlands for the last few decades, Rix consolidated its East Scotland presence with the acquisition of John Walton & Son in April 2000.

Into the early 2000s and up to 2019, there was further expansion in our petroleum business, with the organic growth both of dry & wet depots in Aberdeen, East Anglia, Midlands, Mercia, Anwick and Spalding

Fuelmate

Fuelmate Ltd. was established in 2008, offering our customers a wide range of Fuel card solutions from some of the biggest names in the industry; including BP, Shell, Texaco, UK Fuels & Key Fuels. It is now one of the 10 largest fuel card agents in the country.

Victory Leisure Homes

Victory Leisure Homes, the Rix Groups luxury holiday home manufacturer relocates to a state-of-the-art office, factory, and storage premises on Leeds Road, Hull. The new site will accommodate Victory’s exciting growth plans.

J.R. Rix & Sons invested £300,000 to expand its Jordans car dealership to become the first dealer owned Fiat Group supercentre in the UK. Jordans is now able to offer its customers all the marques from the Fiat group including, Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Chrysler and Jeep.

Lerrix Ship Launch

In May 2012 J.R. Rix and Sons Ltd launch its latest ship at William Wright Dock in Hull at a ceremony attended by Lord Haskins, chairman of the Humber Local Economic Partnership. The Lerrix - named after family member Lucinda Emily Rix - is a £6m steel marine bunkering vessel which is now used to refuel larger ships along the Humber estuary and East Coast.

Rix Renewables

In 2012, Rix began providing high-speed crew transfer boats for wind farm personnel and equipment. Later on in 2018 after partnering with a leading personnel provider, Rix Renewables was officially born, providing the offshore industry with tailored services supporting the UK's Energy Revolution.

Macmillan Charity

A group of Rix employee's helped to raise over £17,000 for Macmillan Cancer Support, our national group charity by taking part in the 262-mile, Tour De Rix bike ride. We continue to support this amazing charity and regularly hold fundraising events throughout the J.R. Rix & Sons group of companies.

Sunday Times' Top Track 250

In 2015 we were ranked 38th in the Sunday Times' Top Track 250, the 10th year we have received this amazing accolade.

Expanding

Rix Petroleum expanded its network by purchasing a number of family business, Stones in the Malton area and Oakleys Fuels based in Telford and Tamworth.

6th Generation

Harry Rix, and Robert Rix, the 6^th generation of the Rix family join the business on a full-time basis. Rob Wilde & Peter Hasnip appointed to board of directors, and the official launch of Accountabl, a FinTech product that simplifies business expenses.

HQ Expansion

In 2021, the business moved to a headquarters at 2 Humber Quays which is a start of the art office facility in the heart of Hull, becoming the home of JR Rix & Sons. In the same year, the group launched Rix Grain Drying in Scotland, which added to its operation around the port of Montrose.

The Rix Group

2022 saw the group create a new brand identity, The Rix Group, in order to centralise the diverse portfolio of brands together under one roof and formalised the vision, mission and values of the business. This ultimately crafted our core vision statement, ‘building stable businesses for future generations’.

Green Future

The business took action to involve itself in the energy transition through the acquisition of James Foley Electrical. Which is now named Rix Energy Services.

Manufacturing Expansion

Victory Conversions launched in 2023, specialising in high-quality commercial, and public sector conversions, operating out of our state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in East Yorkshire.